Designers with an obsession for towering torture chambers, often poorly designed for the well-being of the foot, must get a reality check. I, for one, am over the mania for the high, high heel. Too many career women look like a herd of fashion beasts, aping one another in impractical shoes . . . Can’t anyone take a cue from First Lady Michelle Obama, in the elegant low-heeled shoes she always wears? A flat would be nice.

Of the course, the reason that the First Lady wears the flats has less to do with the comfort and more to do with her amazonian stature.

Be that as it may, the Manolo agrees that the heels had gone beyond what was both advisable and attractive. It was time for the predictable reaction, the return to more practical shoes.

16 Responses to “The End of the Highest of High Heels?”

In future years the uber high heel will be compared with the barbaric practice of foot binding. Both make walking painful and impractical but are considered the most beautiful and sexy for their times.

I’m sure that her height is one reason why Mrs. O wears kitten heels or flats – in heels she would tower over her mate. As would the much smaller Ms. Bruni. Can’t have the consorts be taller than the head of state. Cf. Diana and Charles (even though technically he wasn’t a head of state.) So this shouldn’t be seen as any great advance for women – quite the contrary. I’ve love to see both Carla and Michelle rocking some platforms while they looked down on their shorter mates. Now that would be progress!

Otherwise, I applaud the return to shoes that don’t require the risk of a broken limb or torn ligamet to wear.

I’m backing the Manolo on this-heels that high are just ridiculous. Michelle Obama Could be married to Shaq O’Neill, and I’d bet she would still wear kitten heels. They are, like her, smart, sensible and too cool for words.

The Manolo also completely agrees with Angelhair that the tall ladies should be free to wear high heels to hearts’ content, indeed, she should not in the least be dissuaded by conventional assumptions.

In the fact, the Manolo has addressed this very question multiple times in the past. Here is the link to when he talked about Carla Bruni and her pocket-sized man, and noted that there may be the special exception in this case.

Since I’m a little shorty, I could never give up on my 4+ inchers, however I do agree that they are impractical for everyday and if they got any taller I’m sure that I’d end up paying a podiatrist a pretty penny come a few more years. I also agree that tall chicas shouldn’t be so afraid to rock the high heels. I have so many tall friends who won’t wear anything but flats because they are afraid that they’ll be taller than guys. I have the opposite problem and I am so envious of their modelesque height. Oh well, such is life.

The Deja welcomes a return to *reasonable* heels. No one should feel obligated to wear a low heel just to keep from gazing down upon one’s date’s bald spot, but quite frankly, the lack of choices in between ground-level and stratospheric heel heights has been the Deja’s primary footwear kvetch for the last three years. A nice 2-3″ heel, is it so much to ask??

Even at 5′ I prefer the shorter heels. Most women I see wearing the stilettos cannot walk properly in them and you can see the strain in their leg muscles. To look good you either have to stay seated or stand propped against a wall. A well-designed kitten heel can be just as sexy as a towering monstrosity.

I would welcome the return of the choice – there is no such thing as the right height of heel for every woman.
Apart from the obvious facts mentioned above (Madame Bruni not wanting to tower about her pocket-sized man), I think there’s more – it is all about the image you’re projecting. Mrs. Paltrows extreme high heels say: Look at me, I’m vulnerable and helpless yet sexy on my frivolous shoes! I value beauty so much I can hardly walk!
Not exactly the values you want to see in a first lady.
First Ladies, like Queens, have to be a bit motherlike matronly, squeaky clean like Doris Day. There’s no place for a frivolous high heel, even if you’re a former supermodel.

I don’t mind high heels, as long as they are made to fit the human foot. That means long enough so the toes don’t go over the sole, wide enough that it doesn’t look like foot binding, and a reasonable height that doesn’t tear ligaments when I walk. There is an infinite number of in-between options that aren’t six inch hooker platforms and little flat old lady shoe. I don’t like extremes. I love true Manolo Blahnik shoes, high, but not backbreaking. And little Prada sandals are my latest passion; low, but not matronly. And in the summer I still love cloth wedges, especially white ones which I can paint whatever colour I want.

The link to the Telegraph given by Manolo above states that Carla Bruni is 5’11”.
According to Google Michelle Obama is 5’10 3/4″. Now in the photo above they both seem to be wearing similar height heels and Michelle is clearly inches taller than Carla. If Carla is indeed 5’11, then that would put Michelle well over 6′.

Search Manolo’s Shoe Blog

Manolo Blahnik Says….

Categories

Categories

Archives

Archives

Disclaimer:

Manolo the Shoeblogger is not Mr. Manolo Blahnik. This website is not affiliated in any way with Mr. Manolo Blahnik, any products bearing the federally registered trademarks MANOLO®, BLAHNIK® or MANOLO BLAHNIK®, or any licensee of said federally registered trademarks. The views expressed on this website are solely those of the author.